Engine exhaust systems may use various injections of a reductant to assist in the reaction of various exhaust emissions. In one example, the reductant may include Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF), which may include a urea-based chemical reactant used in selective catalytic reduction (SCR) to reduce emissions of oxides of nitrogen in the exhaust of diesel vehicles. DEF may be stored in a storage vessel, such as a tank, on-board a vehicle.
The inventors herein have recognized that in the case of incomplete vehicles that are delivered to vehicle “up-fitters” for additional modifications (e.g., ambulance, tow truck, etc.), it may be desirable to provide flexibility in the location of the reductant storage. For example, it may be desirable to provide a vehicle chassis, powertrain, and exhaust system to the up-fitters, yet with various components, such as the reductant storage vessel configured to be mountable at various locations. For example, some up-fitters may modify or add various vehicle components, and to most efficiently do so, the up-fitters may wish to relocate the reductant storage vessel, along with other components, such as a vehicle fuel tank.
However, the inventors herein have also recognized that providing such flexibility can result in degraded emission control. For example, if the reductant tank is relocated further away from an injection location, thus resulting in longer reductant delivery lines, the increased flow resistance may adversely affect reductant delivery, diagnostics, and/or various other operations. Furthermore, a longer line may result in increased heater wiring, and thus increased heater resistance. Again, such modifications may affect heater control, heater diagnostics, etc.
In one example approach, at least some of the above issues can be at least partially addressed by a method of configuring a controller of a vehicle with an exhaust system including a reductant storage vessel, comprising: receiving vehicle exhaust system configuration information; and adjusting exhaust system operating parameters based on the received exhaust system configuration information.
In this way, it may be possible to accommodate relocation of various exhaust system components, such as a reductant (e.g., DEF) storage vessel, as well as related effects of such relocation, such as variation in reductant (e.g., DEF) heater resistance.
It should be understood that the background and summary above is provided to introduce in simplified form a selection of concepts that are further described in the detailed description. It is not meant to identify key or essential features of the claimed subject matter, the scope of which is defined uniquely by the claims that follow the detailed description. Furthermore, the claimed subject matter is not limited to implementations that solve any disadvantages noted above or in any part of this disclosure.